Europe

Italians bring their own unique relaxed style to skiing. Instead of a cappuccino after your third run, you have a spritz with a snowball instead of ice. A good lunch with wine is considered essential, and a couple of grappas are required before you ski the home slope at the end of the afternoon…

Located only 30 km’s from Charles de Gaulle airport Chantilly is the perfect last night in France destination. An historic Chateau complete with the oldest art collection in France at Musee Conde, Dressage Performances at The Grand Stables and a Relais and Chateaux for one little last splurge!

I like to think of my young self as an ‘original’ backpacker. You know the one – young, broke, hauling too big a backpack along with a 6 month Eurail pass in my back pocket. (Back when there were no mobile phones, letters home were sent via post and you had to go into a bank to withdraw money!) The Eurail pass allowed me to go where any train would take me in Europe. That was pretty cool. I have had a soft spot for train travel ever since. (Not sure if thats because trains still exist in this world!) I was really looking...

Imagine snow lightly falling as you arrive early morning into Paris. It is dark still, no one is about, it is a cold 1 to 2 degrees on a Saturday. You are dropped off in the narrow laneways of Paris St Germain, the cobbles are slick and the reflected lights from patisseries and cafes glow warmly, beckoning you in to try freshly baked croissants and steaming hot chocolate.

If you like cute-ness, history, food, chocolate, waffles or beer and frites, you absolutely must visit Bruges (Brugge in Flemish). Bruges is on my must-go-back-and must-stay-longer-next-time list. We had two days (three nights), and I think that three days is really the absolute minimum, but you could easy spend a week here. Bruges oozes medieval history. It is all cobbled streets, gorgeous medieval stone buildings, squares, churches, towers, and canals. It was a major European trading centre from the 1400s through to the 1800s, with...